Watercolour Wednesday - Changing Leaves

Hello, today's card has really made me feel like Autumn is here. Using the Changing Leaves stamp set, I started by stamping all 3 leaves onto a piece of watercolour paper using Versamark ink pad. I used my stamping platform to make sure that the whole images were on the paper so I stamped the images several times to make sure. I covered the whole sheet with Copper embossing powder from the Metallics range of embossing powders and then heat set it. After a few minutes to ensure it was cool, I began soaking the watercolour paper with lots of water and then added stripes of colour from a block. I had used my Stampin' Write Marker pens on a large block using Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight and Poppy Parade pens. I then spritzed the water all over the block and added the block to the paper which have all of the leaves on. The colours mingled together somewhat and turned a hazy colour of light orange once it was dry. I had to use my heat gun to speed the drying up.

Once dry, I cut a smaller mat than usual at 8.52cm by 12.5cm or 5" by 3,3/8" of the leaves and added it to a plain white mat. I embossed the card base with the Fern embossing folder to add some more texture and using Dimensionals, I added the 2 mats onto the card base in Pumpkin Pie. A simple 'Thank You' and it was complete.

Tips, Tricks and Techniques Tuesday - Botanical Beauty and Botanical Layers

 Hello and thank you for stopping by. Today's card is one that I had in my mind last week when it wasn't my turn for the blog but here it is. Another very easy card if you don't mind some fussy cutting! As many of you know...I LOVE it! I started by stamping the Botanical Beauty onto a white mat in lovely shed of green called Shaded Spruce. Then using my trimmer I gutted the centre out of the card and kept it to the side. I left 2cm all around the outer edge and then mounted the paper onto a piece of the gorgeous blueish green of Lost Lagoon which I had first embossed using the lovely Fern embossing folder. 

I stamped the Botanical Layers onto another piece of white card and fussy cut them out. Sadly there are no dies! They were added onto the Lost Lagoon mat over the stamped border. I then adhered all of them to the Shaded Spruce card base. 

This and That Thursday - Seasonal Branches

 Well, it's Thursday already and it's time for THIS or THAT decisions to be made... by you! Once again, I have used the Seasonal Branches stamp set and dies. I coordinated these 2 cards with the Cards and envelopes from the Bright and Beautiful set. The colours are just beautiful and so easy to match with.

My THIS card is a landscape card. I started by die cutting a circle shape  from the Irresistible Blooms dies then stamped the branches and flowers from the Seasonal Branches set. I added a piece of DSP from the Bright and Beautiful DSP designer series papers which I think has made the shape pop out. The branch, flowers and leaves were die cut out and then added onto the branch and card. I only used a few of the flowers as I didn't want to swamp the leaves out completely.

 

THIS

 

THAT

The next card is THAT and this one is portrait style. Again the Bright and Beautiful Memories and More Card base. I added an embossed circle which was embossed with the Fern embossing folder, onto the card using Dimensionals and then started to add the smaller branch die cuts onto the circle and made a nest! Then I started on the birds. I stamped 2 birds and reversed the now, nesting one. I was able to draw around the bird onto the reverse of the stamped image and proceeded to colour them both in using several colours of Stampin' Blends pens.

 

 

 

Both of these cards were basically very simple and I love the card bases making them pop so well. 

 

This or That Thursday - Translucent Florals

 Both of my projects for today are partially from the weekend of crafting with Stampin Up demonstrators from all over the world. It was great fun. Mine are not as they were meant to be as I changed them quite a lot. We used the Translucent Florals stamp set, Gray Granite card and Very Vanilla card. The first is the Congratualations card that I stamped the small seeded plant 3 times across a mat of the gray and then using the vanilla card, I stamped the big leaves in Old Olive ink and die cut it out. I don't have any of the new ribbon as yet so I used the gorgeous silky Gray Granite ribbon. Each of the mats were die cut with the Deckled Rectangles dies. I used the Fern embossing folder for the front panel once I had stamped all over it.

My first card is THIS 

 

 

My second card is You're The Best, made in Poppy Parade and Basic White card. Simply stamped 2 of the flowers in Poppy Parade, the stalks in Old Olive and the 2 sets of leaves in Old Olive too. I also stamped the leaves onto a piece of vellum and fussy cut them out. The vellum was curled over a ball/embossing tool to add some dimension to the leaves. I stamped the flowers aross the red card base and it seems to add more interest to the card base. Another of the Deckled Rectangles, a sentiment and adding the leaves with a glue dot to hold them in position.

My second card is THAT

So that is my 2 cards for this and that today. Which is your favourite?

Technique Tuesday - Happiness Abounds

Today's the day of the NEW ANNUAL CATALOGUE being released. If you would like a copy of it and don't have a demonstrator, please drop us a line and we will happily get one in the post to you. We can send to UK and most of Europe. Today though, I am using another of my new stamp sets, this one is called Happiness Abounds. 

I have made a card using a technique that I haven't used in quite a while. It's called the Bubble Wrap technique. It can be done in so many different ways but today's card was made by adding drops of reinker to the surface of a clear block and using a piece of curled up bubble wrap, I dabbed it a few times in the ink and added it to a piece of white card. I smooshed it over the paper a few times and just repeated it in a few different colours. Basically, I had fun with it!

Once dry and using a Memento ink pad, I stamped several of the flowers over the inked area. Then I fussy cut around them. Yes, I have the dies but I didn't want to waste any of the inked imagery! A few leaves, and embossed white mat to lay them on and it's completed. The embossing folder is also new and is called simply, Fern. It gives the most beautiful image once embossed. I used the Tahitian Tide card base to mount the mat and the flowers onto.

 

Here are the blocks ready to play with and the bubble wrap below in the 2nd picture.

The next 2 pictures are the papers I made using the bubble wrap. I used the left hand one for my card.